'The Arctic Council Secretariat, based in Tromso in
Norway, was keen to play down any political implications. In response
to my inquiry, I was told the meeting had been rescheduled in form of
teleconferences and written exchanges, and various meetings of Council
working groups and task forces were going ahead in the coming weeks in
Canada and in other Arctic Council member states. Business as usual?
When Canada, which currently holds the chair of the Arctic Council,
boycotted a working meeting of the organization planned for April in
Moscow, Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq called it a “principled
stand” against Russian actions in Ukraine.

'On other levels, the political repercussions of
the Ukraine crisis for the Arctic are undisputed. A statement from the
U.S. State Department reads:

'“Given Russia’s ongoing
violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the US
government has taken a number of actions, to include curtailing official
government-to-government contacts and meetings with the Russian
Federation on a case-by-case basis.”

'That includes
Arctic-related events. The withdrawal of State Department funding for a
hazard-reduction workshop planned for June between Russian scientists
and their U.S. counterparts. The head of Russia’s emergency services
also failed to show up at an international meeting in Alaska last month.

'With
the West looking to broaden sanctions against Russia because of the
Ukraine dispute, relations between the two factions are bound to be
strained in a region where climate change has set off a highly
competitive race for oil, gas and other resources.'